The Woman On The Moon
by Selene of the Goblins
Summary: Jack tells Ashi the story of Kaguya. Years later, she tells it again to someone else. Written for The Jashi Zine: Burgeoning Relationship
1. The Tale of Kaguya

_Written for The Jashi Zine: Burgeoning Relationship_

 _A very special thank you to Sally and Ore for organizing the project, and to everyone that encouraged, edited, and supported this fic._

* * *

Neither of them could sleep. Jack had gotten his sword back and Ashi had beaten an entire army.

Ashi glanced over from where she laid and saw Jack laying still but still awake. Her mind wandered back to the night she first told him to tell her the truth.

"Jack?" Ashi asked timidly, looking to the night sky. "Do you know other stories? Like the one about the stars that you told me?"

Jack looked up and found his eyes drawn to the waxing moon.

"I know one about a woman who lives on the moon," he answered. "But… it's not a happy tale."

"Tell it to me," Ashi encouraged him.

Jack paused and then began:

" _Long ago, there lived a kind but poor Bamboo Cutter and his Wife who longed to have a child. One day, when the Bamboo Cutter and his Wife were working in his grove and they came to a stalk that was bigger than the others._

 _He cut it open and found a little girl inside of it._

 _"Who are you?" The Wife asked her._

 _"My name is Princess Kaguya," she told them. "I am here to be your daughter."_

 _The Bamboo Cutter told her sadly, "I wish we could be your family, but we are so poor that we would not be able to give you the care you need."_

 _"Fear not, dear Father," Kaguya said. "For our house shall be greatly blessed. Please go and cut another bamboo stalk."_

 _The Bamboo Cutter did as Kaguya asked. He was shocked to discover that whenever he cut a bamboo stalk, a gold nugget would fall from it._

 _It was with this blessing that Kaguya and her new family were able to build a small palace of their own and live comfortably._

 _As time went on, Kaguya grew up to become one of the most beautiful women in all of the land. Many men came to ask for her hand but the Bamboo Cutter only allowed five to approach her._

 _Kaguya, however, did not want to marry, so she gave each of her five suitors an impossible task. More than one tried to reason with her, but she was adamant in her requests. Not one of the suitors could accomplish what she asked of them._

 _Word of the five suitors and the tasks eventually reached the ears of the Emperor. He found himself quite curious about what kind of woman would issue such tests and requested to meet her._

 _When the Emperor laid eyes upon her, he fell deeply in love and asked her to become his wife, but Kaguya only looked sadly upon the Emperor and told him, "Forgive me, but I can not marry you, for I am not a citizen of this land."_

 _The Emperor was confused. "If you are not one of my subjects, then where are you from?" he asked._

 _"I am from the Kingdom of the Moon," she confessed to him. "I was sent here to grant a wish at the request of my own King. My time in this land is ending and I must return within a few nights. My King will be sending an envoy to escort me home."_

 _The Emperor was horrified at the thought of never seeing her again and stationed a battalion of his finest soldiers outside her home in order to stop the envoy._

 _When night fell and the moon was highest in the sky, the soldiers saw a bright flash of light and found themselves blinded._

 _When daybreak came, the sight of the soldiers was restored, and Kaguya was nowhere to be found._

 _In her room, they found a strange vial and letter addressed to the Emperor from Kaguya. The letter thanked the Emperor for his hospitality and revealed that the strange vial was the Elixir of Life, which would grant immortality to the drinker._

 _Heartbroken, the Emperor refused to drink it, for he didn't want to live forever knowing the woman he loved would not be a part of it. So, he ordered the Elixir to be burned upon the highest mountain in the land."_

Ashi held her beloved daughter in her arms, wrapping them both up in a thick blanket, and concluding a story she learned long before she was born.

"Mama?" The small child asked. "Did Kaguya want to go back to the Moon?"

She thought for a moment before answering with a question, "What do you think she wanted to do, Kiko?"

"I think she wanted someone to help her. She could have given the Emperor a test like she did with the others who wanted to marry her but she told him that she had to go back to the Moon. I don't think she wanted to go back."

"I think so, too, sweetie," Ashi agreed with her.

They heard a flying car zoom past the window.

Ashi looked outside to the skyline, the stars made invisible by the city lights and the uniform black skyscrapers.

"Mama?" Kiko asked again. "Will I... ever get to meet Papa?"

Ashi looked down to Kiko's face. Her straight nose. Her jawline. Her kind eyes. There wasn't anything in her features that didn't resemble him.

There was a long silence before Ashi could bring herself to be honest with her.

"I don't know."


	2. Extended Ending

_Enjoy the extended ending that didn't make it into the Zine!_

* * *

The sun had gone down over the Land of the Rising Sun and seven little princes and princesses, who were supposed to be in their own beds, had sneaked into the room of their older sister, barely illuminated by candlelight.

"And what, pray tell, are you seven doing in my room?" she asked the children; the second eldest being half her age.

A toddler, the youngest of the seven, Tsukiro walked up to her and said, "Story time, please?"

The eldest sister smiled wrapped him in her arms, so that he sat on her lap. "What story would you like?" she asked sweetly.

The Emperor and Empress were unable to sleep and walked quietly around their living quarters. They were not surprised to find all eight of their children in one bedroom.

They were far more interested in their eldest's strange retelling of Momotaro and Kaguya.

According to her, the two characters had been lovers, and once Kaguya had been forced to return to the Moon Kingdom, Momotaro vowed to free his love. Something about asking the Gods for help, reuniting to outwit the Moon King together, and finally returning to Earth as husband and wife with their own daughter who had sprung forth from a plum.

It was a rather peculiar tale, but it was distinctly theirs.


End file.
